Well, there you have it folks. We are closing up October; congratulations for making it this far! Halloween is near, and right before you know it, it’s already Christmas. So as I ease into festive holiday cooking, let me begin with this fall recipe. It is pumpkin season and my Instagram feed has blown up with pumpkin spice everything. Like it, love it, or hate it, there is no denying that we all just have to accept it as part of tradition.
Vegan Pumpkin Cream Pasta, a recipe I developed, is a lazy pantry dish perfect for weeknights and romantic dinner nights in (what is dining out these days). It is, also, intentionally made for a Halloween. Because, let’s face it, we cannot feast on just sweets. We need a savory dish to balance it out and this is it!
You can make this dish under an hour: no exotic ingredients, minimal preparation, and not to mention, a one pot kind of meal.
A little bit of backstory of when I first had pumpkin. I, honestly, never understood the flavor. It was sweet but it can also be, quite, savory. Which I found weird. There were also times when I did not even taste pumpkin, or recognized the flavor to begin with. My first pumpkin pie, I thought, “well, I don’t understand the hype of this!” Long story short, I did not grow up in a household that prepared pumpkin as pies or a form of flavoring a dish. So it was a new territory for me to explore. I went into recipe developing for this blog (over four years ago) and found an appreciation for it.
I realized, pumpkin can literally be used for anything! Given that it can be a little overkill during the fall, it is very versatile that it can be used for either sweet or savory dishes.
PUMPKIN CREAM
In vegan cooking, the usual way to make a “cream” sauce by blending soaked raw cashews into cream. While this method is okay, it takes a lot of time. And you will need to use a high speed blender for it, otherwise the texture will just be gritty. Luckily for this recipe, you don’t need to do any of that. Pumpkin puree has a thick, and very soft, texture; that when it is blended with plant milk, vegetable broth, and a little bit of vegan cheese, it creates a smooth & savory cream sauce. Not to mention, it creates such a gorgeous color. Pumpkin cream will be the base of this pasta dish.
PASTA SELECTION
Because the base of our sauce is thicker and creamy, I selected campanelle pasta. Which is a pasta with petal-like edges and a hollow center ideally made for cream sauces. While you can choose any pasta that you have on hand, I intentionally selected campanelle pasta as it is, also, complementary to pumpkin and chickpeas – which are key ingredients for this dish. But, again, this is all preference (though highly recommended) – you can always swap to a pasta of your liking.
OTHER KEY INGREDIENTS
- Portobello mushrooms OR soy curls – for a hearty “meaty texture” that adds to the pasta dish.
- Fresh sage – which you can find in any supermarket. This particular herb is the most complimenting with pumpkin which adds a savory, aromatic, and (slightly) minty blend. If you cannot find fresh sage, you can always use dried but just keep in mind to double the amount.
- Garbanzo Beans or Chickpeas – for added texture of the pasta dish and flavor. It’s also a very healthy source of protein. The garbanzo beans will not be overpowering, it will help balance out the savory flavors overall.
- Vegan Cheese – to add savoriness and overall creaminess to the sauce. It will almost resemble a “fancy” pumpkin mac and cheese.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil – as added flavor to the sauce.
- Cooking White Wine – While optional, adding a little white wine (of your choice) to a cream sauce adds a depth of flavor. Don’t worry, the alcohol is burned off once it is cooked.
- Vegan Butter – As a finishing touch to any pasta dish.
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OTHER PASTA RECIPES YOU MAY ENJOY
Vegan Pumpkin Cream Pasta
Equipment
- 5-6qt of soup pot
- Spatula
- measuring cups
- collander or strainer
Ingredients
- 2 cups campanelle pasta or any pasta of choice
- 1 cup chopped portobello mushrooms OR soy curls see notes
- ⅓ cup garbanzo beans or chickpeas (cooked & drained)
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves (1 tbsp) garlic minced
- ⅓ cup onions diced
- ½ tbsp dried basil
- 3-4 pieces fresh sage
- ⅓ cup vegan shredded cheese (Violife Parmesan OR Daiya Cheddar)
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or adjust to your liking)
- 1 tsp red chili flakes (optional)
- salt & cracked pepper to taste
SAUCE INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup unsweetened plain plant milk (I used soy milk)
- ½ cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
- 1½ cup vegetable broth or "vegan chicken" broth see notes
- ¼ cup white cooking wine (optional)
- 1 tbsp unsalted vegan butter
Instructions
- Boil pasta according to box instructions in salted water or to al dente (slightly under cooked). Once pasta is tender, drain from pot and leave on collander / strainer to remove excess liquid.
- Place pot back onto the stove top and heat to medium heat. Be sure pot is all dried before using. Drizzle olive oil to coat the pot.
- Toss in the onions, garlic, & sage leaves to the pot. Stir until it is well combined and fragrant. Season with dried basil, pepper flakes, pumpkin spice, and a pinch of salt & pepper. Add the mushrooms or soy curls and sauté. Leave for about 2-3 minutes until the mushrooms sweat (or if the soy curls have slightly browned around the edges).
- Mix in the pumpkin puree until well combined.
- Pour in the vegetable broth and stir. Then add the cooking wine to simmer. Allow all the flavors to soak in the broth for a minute or two. Then, add the milk and lower down your heat to medium. Allow the sauce to simmer for 3-4 minutes. Season with a bit of salt & pepper to taste. Add the garbanzo beans and stir.
- Reduce the heat to low. Toss the pasta into the sauce and gently fold until it is well combined. Add the vegan cheese and fold until it dissolves into the sauce.
- Turn off heat. Add a tablespoon of butter into the pasta and fold until it melts. Sprinkle pepper flakes and fresh ground black pepper to serve. Top with fresh sage for garnish.½